Understanding
by Chiisarin
Summary: Takes place after Devil Arms sidequest. Presea takes a walk to clear her mind, and finds an unexpected companion...slight PreseaYggdrasill, but only if you squint. Slight spoilers.
1. Growing

Presea stares at the shore's waters. The group had just defeated Abyssion and had decided to rest for the night.

_Come closer girl…_

She shakes her head, trying to get the demon's voice out of her head.

"Are you okay, Presea?" Came Lloyd's concerned voice from the campfire. Presea looks up to see the rest of the group with a worried look on their face.

"You know you can always tell us anything, right Presea?" says Collette.

_Everyone's so worried about me…I don't want to bother them…It's okay if I don't tell, just this once….right? _

She stands up.

"I'm going to take a walk." She says quietly, before turning to the forest. No one follows. They know she needs some time to herself.

She walks among the foliage, admiring the trees and flowers. As she breaths the cool air, she is reminded of Ozette.

She is alone.

She sits down on a boulder, and picks up a random piece of wood. She takes out her dagger, and starts to whittle it down.

Slash! Slash! CREACK!

Carving. It was a skill that Alicia taught her. Try as she might though, she found that Alicia's carving would always seem more life-like, full of _emotion_. Emotion…would she ever be able to understand it? Or would she be that empty soul who loses to the darkness?

No. She musn't think like that. She has her friends, who care for her. She can't let them down.

Swish…her knife strikes empty air. She looks down to find that in her hand is the completed carving of a flower…the flower that Alicia had liked so much…a presea.

Yet as she looks at the flower, she can't help but notice all the errors. The leaf is bent at a weird angle, the shapes are blocky, on one of the petals she had accidentally slashed, making it look as if the petal was broken. So many mistakes…would she ever become good?

The wind blows. She senses another's presence; she is not alone.

In a flash, her ax is out and is facing the intruder. Her eyes narrow as she discovers his identity.

"Yggdrasill…" She growls. Her stares back at her impassively. She wonders how long he had been there.

"Peace, human. I am not here to fight." He says, a slight sneer in his voice. She does not back down. His cold face seems to soften somewhat, as if tired. "Please…do not ruin this beautiful night."

She sees logic in his argument, remembering the time when he had said that he does not kill without reason. She sits back down on her boulder, but keeps her hand on her axe. He accepts this response and leans against a tree, before closing his eyes.

She is confused. Is he letting his guard down in front of her, an enemy? Or is it merely a trick, to make her lower her guard? She watches him carefully. He does not change his position, apparently oblivious to her gaze.

After a while of watching, she finds her mind wandering. The moon is not visible, she notices. Is it hiding among the clouds? Or is today a day in which only the shadow can be seen?

"Did you carve this?"

Her eyes fly to Yggdrasill. He is holding her flower carving, looking at it carefully. She does not remember dropping it; she must have done so when pulling out her axe.

"Yes." She answers, wondering as to what he is thinking as he looks at it. What does he see when he looks at the carving?

To her surprise, he takes out a knife and starts to whittle at it. Presea watches with amazed eyes as he moves the knife gracefully, smoothing out all of cricks and scratches. The flower seems to bloom under his hands, becoming beautiful and pretty.

He stops for a moment, looking at it, and puts his knife away, signaling his finish. The presea's transformation is astounding. Within seconds, it has come to life.

He gets up and starts walking to her. Before she knows it, she is being offered the flower. She hesitantly takes it and stares at it, before looking up at Yggdrasill. His eyes are distant.

"Martel would always say that people cannot become beautiful by themselves. They need help from other people before they can grow." He smiles, and for a moment, Presea swears that she can see Mithos. "I never really understood her until now. Thank you."

She blinks and he is gone, a flash seen in the sky. She continues to stare at the sky, and sees the moon.

_Emotions…they are confusing things._

She watches for a little while longer before sliding off her boulder and walking back to the campsite.

Raine notices her return and smiles.

"Did you have a nice walk?" She asks.

Presea looks down at her flower carving.

"I think so…" She says.

* * *

The morning after, Presea wakes from a peaceful sleep and notices something by her head. Looking closer, she notices that it's some flowers. 

As she picks it up, she becomes aware of the noise from the campsite.

"Lloyd!! You feel asleep on guard duty again!!" Sheena yells.

"Sorry!!" Lloyd says sheepishly, scratching his head. "It was just so peaceful and nice…I couldn't help it."

"Lloyd…you're hopeless." Genis sighs while shaking his head. Presea gets up, the unknown flowers in her hand as she goes to where the rest of the group is.

"Ah! Presea!! What pretty flowers!!" Colette exclaims. "It's a carnation and a hydrangea right? Hmmm…what does that mean in flower language again? Umm…happiness?"

"A hydrangea means "Thank you for understanding" and a pink carnation means "I'll never forget you"." Raine says, coming up from behind. "Did you pick up those flowers on your walk Presea? They're quite pretty."

Presea says nothing and stares wonderingly at the flowers.

_Thank you for understanding. I'll never forget you._

She feels as if she should be the one saying those words.

* * *

AN: Hmm...I got inspiration from this after going to a random pairing generator and got Presea/Yggdrasill. Did I portray Yggdrasill okay? I might continue this if I ever feel the need to...but for now, it'll stay a one-shot. Please review! 


	2. Guilt

From that night one, she takes a walk every night. She doesn't know why. Perhaps she subconsciously hopes to see him again. She keeps the wood carving, and had turned it into a pendant which she hung upon her neck on a piece of string. The other two flowers she puts on the grave of her father. 

At first Lloyd and Genis had gotten worried that she was being bothered by the Devil's Arms, but she had assured them that it was nothing of the sort. After a while, it became a part of the routine. They would eat dinner, talk a bit, and a half hour later, Presea would take her walk.

Mostly on her walks, she would whittle away on a block of wood. She would carve anything; her friends, animals, trees, random shapes. She likes to carve while wondering about things. In a way, it gives her a sense of pride to know she is not wasting time by just thinking.

Tonight however, she gets an odd urge.

"Genis…" She hesitantly asks. He immediately pops his gaze to her.

"W-what is it, Presea?" He stutters. She wonders as to why his face is red.

"May I…borrow your panpipes?" She asks. He pops up.

"Sure thing!" He responds loudly and goes to his bag to get his panpipes. After finding them, he hands them to her, their hands touching briefly. He pulls back quickly.

Presea looks up at him, and smiles, hoping that this was a proper situation that one smiles in.

"Thank you, Genis."

Perhaps her eyesight was failing, but Genis seemed to turn even redder.

"N-no problem!"

She walks off. In the background, she can hear Zelos tease Genis.

"Hehehe…the twerp's finally making a move!!"

"Shut up!!"

She walks into the forest, their conversation drifting away. And she is alone.

She sits down and brings the pipes up to her lip, unsure as to how to blow. Her lips shaping an "o", she blows.

WHOOooo…

The note comes out strong at first, but then fizzles after a second. She tries again, shaping her lips differently.

WHOOOOOOOOOoooo….

She finds that she is able to blow the note longer this time, though she still fizzles out after a few seconds. Satisfied with the result, she tries blowing different notes. She finds that she can only connect two notes at a time before having to take a breath. Nonetheless, she keeps practicing.

She does that for the next week, practicing the panpipes until she can actually play a melody smoothly. By the end of the week, she has figured out the melody to the song that her sister would sing to her as a lullaby.

He comes again.

He flies in when Presea stops for a moment, to take a break. He does not notice her at first, looking around.

"I swear I heard Martel's song…" He mutters to himself. It is then he finds her looking at him, his panpipes in her hand. "So it was you."

"Yes." She says, not knowing what comment would be appropriate for a situation such as this one.

"Genis...gave you my panpipes?"

Presea is silent for a moment, not knowing whether she should answer. Would Yggdrasill feel betrayed at how his half-elf friend lent his panpipes to a filthy human?

"Yes. I'm borrowing them for the moment."

And she sees it. The small spark of betrayal alight on his face before it turns cold again. She feels bad…is it guilt? That feeling Regal would talk about so much and express with such clarity?

She hesitates.

"I'm…sorry."

Yggdrasill gives her an odd look. Perhaps she had used the phrase wrong. Regal told her about this saying when she had asked about what to do when one feels regret.

"_There is only thing you can do…apologize and try to make things better."_

"What are you apologizing for, human?" He sneers. Presea looks down.

"I…"

What is she apologizing for? She feels…she feels…what is she feeling? Why does she want to make Yggdrasill feel better? She doesn't understand. She doesn't understand at all.

"Save your words. There are too many things you humans should apologize for." He narrows his eyes at her. "And you aren't even holding the panpipes right. You should be supporting the weight of it on the larger side. Hmph. Can't even figure that out?"

She doesn't watch him leave. She is lost in her cloud of thoughts, like in a fog. Something is blocking her sight. She doesn't understand. She fiddles with the flower on her neck.

She remembers.

"_How do you know when you have made things better?"_

_Regal sighs, one of those deep long sighs that are pulled out._

"_When…when you feel better about yourself."_

She had apologized. But she does not feel better. Things are not alright. She looks down to the panpipes in frustration.

What had caused Yggdrasill to act so meanly to her? Or perhaps was this normal for him? That that one night long ago was just only a one-time event?

To never see Mithos—no, Yggdrasill smile again…

She is saddened. And then she lights up with wondering realization.

Taking the panpipes, she shifts her hands so rather than holding it at the sides, she supports the large side's weight with one hand.

And suddenly it's much lighter.

Yggdrasill…helped her with the panpipes?

…Had he meant to?

Suddenly the night seems more serene and heavenly.

She goes back.

Raine is the first to glance up when she reaches the campsite.

"Ah, you're still playing those things?"

Presea nods slowly.

"Yes…" She hesitates. "…Would you…would you like to hear them?"

Raine blinks owlishly, and for a brief pause in time, Presea is scared that she'll say no. Her heart beats quickly. But then Raine's facec shines into a warm smile.

"I'd love to."

So she plays, attracting the attention of the others in the group. It is the first time she plays the song perfectly.

She gives Genis his panpipes back that night.

* * *

AN: Meep! I was so happy to know that someone actually wanted me to continue!! (Which is why you readers should review! To make this authoress happy!! ) And it even got on someone's favorite list!! Yay!! As I'm a newbie at fanfic writing, this is a HUUGE accomplishment! Whoo! I don't like this chapter so much though...I think I did much better on the first chapter though...please tell me what you think!! 


	3. Anger

"How is Altessa doing?" Presea asks Sheena, who had just gotten out of the room. 

"He's resting." Was Sheena's vague answer. Presea lowers her eyes. A warm hand is placed on her shoulder. She looks up to see Raine.

"I'm sure Altessa is fine." She reassures Presea. "Don't worry."

Presea looks down, a tensed silence engulfing the room.

"I'm going to take a walk." She says, breaking free of Raine's hold. Her hand is on the door handle when Sheena calls out.

"Hey!" She stops, but does not turn. "Be careful, alright?"

"…Understood."

She leaves. Her body leads her to wherever. Somewhere.

She doesn't know. She doesn't care.

She blinks and her blinding illusion is gone. Suddenly, she's in Ozette. And a familiar blond-haired angel is in front of her, his back facing her.

"Yggdrasill?" She whispers to herself. He twitches, probably having heard her with his angel senses she realizes, and shifts slightly, showing a sea-filled eye. It narrows.

And he's gone. Like the air in her throat. Her mind begins to panic as he chokes her.

"Khg…" Is the only noise that she is able to make.

The hand around her neck tightens as she stuggles.

"Tell me…" He asks with a menacing voice. "Why should I keep you alive?"

She is unable to say anything. Her vision is slowly fading…no, she must live. For Alicia. She starts to wriggle and move around even more, kicking her legs frantically.

"I'd be doing the world a favor wouldn't I?" She hears him mutter to himself. And suddenly, as quickly as she had been grabbed, she is let go of. Her body hits the ground with a hard _crackkk_.

"Humans are quite pathetic aren't they…They are better off dead."

His words echo in her head.

…_Alicia…better off dead?_

She feels herself start to fill with a hot irritation. It surges through her, filling her every vein like wildfire. This feeling…she's felt it before…_Anger._

…_No…that's a lie. Alicia…_

"Shut up."

The words are whispered. He doesn't hear them.

"Foul creatures...they pretend to be superior, when they're really just scared of what's different."

She pushes her hands against the ground, her arms shaking. For some reason, she is filled with an odd sort of energy that pulses over and over, each time with another urge that she wants to do.

…_Alicia's death…had no meaning…_

"Shut up."

The words are spat out like darts of ice, like dripping poison, like spits of fire.

…_Her death only brought pain…and sadness…_

Yet he doesn't hear.

"They can't understand what half-elves go through…Yes, they will never understand."

"_Shut up_."

SLAP!!

Red.

That is the color of Presea's hand, the color of Yggdrasill's cheek, the color of blood.

Burning drops trail down her cheeks…since when did she start to cry?

"It's you who doesn't understand."

The words come to her so fast, that they all spill out.

"It's you who doesn't understand the pain you bring to people by killing them. It's you who doesn't understand."

She advances forward, her eyes burning into his.

"It's because of you that I lost so many years of my life. It's because of you that the people of this village had hated me. It's because of you _that my sister is dead._ You are your _stupid Exspheres." _

Yggdrasill just seems to stare at her, frozen in one state.

"Why can't you understand that what you're doing is wrong?"

This is the first time she has walked away from him. The first time that she not left feeling confused.

Sheena and Raine find her in a corner of the house, crying.

* * *

AN: Wow...that took a long time to write, yet it's probably the shortest chapter. I guess I'm just not so good at writing angry scenes...By the way, did Presea's anger seem out of character? I hope not... 

Also, thank you to the person who pointed out that Presea was the older sister. I kinda forgot about that...ehehe...I also made another mistake, as the panpipes that Mithos gave to Genis were broken in the game. Could you pretend they weren't just for the sake of the fic? Also, I'd like to say, feel free to mention any situations in which Presea and Yggdrasill might meet up somehow alone. That's usually the only obstacle that keeps me from updating.


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